The Apple
by BadWolf63
Summary: Percy struggles to find the perfect way to propose to Annabeth and he finds help from a very unlikely source. One shot


**So I have done other fics, but this is my first Percabeth one and my first romance one. I have always loved this idea and I just had to write a fic about it. This takes place after BOA and after Calypso and Leo come back to camp.**

 _ **Italics are thoughts.**_

 **Disclaimer: I don't own the PJO or HOO books**

* * *

Percy's POV:

 _"Oh gods,"_ I think as I sit against the tree in the forest rolling a velvety black box in my hands, _"It's already July 10th. I have to come up with an idea in two days."_

I open the little black box, staring at the ring inside. It has a band made of pure Imperial Gold with small darkblue diamonds embedded in it, wrapping all the way around it. I had gone to buy a ring in New York about 3 weeks ago. On my way there,I  
/was stopped by a voice. Athena talked to me about my intention to propose to her daughter. After talking for a while, an endeavor that involved me walking into quite a few street poles and and then finally having to sit down to finish ourconversation,  
/she gave me her blessing to propose and had sent Hermes down to give me an ancient ring that she wanted me to give to Annabeth.

Ihad spent years saving up for a ring, staring when we started college in New Rome when we were 19. We just finished our last year and I am nowplanning on using the money to buy one of the newly constructed houses at CampHalf Blood.

Chiron decidedto take a leaf out of Camp Jupiter's book and had a large area created behind the Big House with a small neighborhood of simple houses created to mirror the family housing at Camp Jupiter. I encouraged the project because I knew that  
/Annabeth would neverwant to live anywhere but Camp Half Blood.

Once I had the ring, I had to figure out how to propose. I had been sitting in the forest for hours every day for the past 4 days trying to come up with an idea. I couldn't tell any of our friends what I was planing for fear of them accidentally telling  
/her. I had been thinking about it pretty much since theBattle of Manhattan when we were 16, but now that it was about to happen, I was frozen.

I was lost so deep in my thoughts that I didn't hear someone coming upbehind me.

"What is that?" asks a voice behind me.

I jump up, the box falling to the ground as I pull out Riptide. When turn towards the voice, I see a very surprised Calypso standing next to the tree I had been leaningagainst.

I relax and move to put Riptide away.

 _"I guess I have to tell her,"_ I think to myself, _"Maybe she can help me."._

"I am trying to figure out how to propose to Annabeth." I say to her, " I have no idea how to do it. I want to make it perfect, but I have no idea how."

"I thought that the typical method of proposal was to throw an apple to her."Calypso says with a confused expression on her face.

I laugh, "That is how it was done in Ancient Greece. These days, people exchange rings."

"Oh," she says, "Well, I liked it the old way. It was more interesting and rather romantic."

"Yeah..." I say, an idea coming to mind.

* * *

Time skip to the morning of Annabeth's birthday.

* * *

I take a deep breath as I walk on to the dining pavilion. Annabeth is sitting on the end of our normal table talking with Piper and Hazel. Calypso sits at the other end next to Leo, she turns to me and gives me an encouraging smile and leans to ask Annabethsomething.

"Hey, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth yells,"Can you pass me something from the buffet table?"

"Sure" I yell back. This is the big moment.

I grab the brightest, reddest, apple from the table and toss it to her.

She catches it and then the whole pavilion goes silent.

She stands up and walks over to me, every person in camp staring at us. Chiron watches from his table, a slight smile on his face.

"Seaweed Brain," Annabeth says, "You do know that in Ancient Greece,throwing an apple to a girl that you were in a relationship with wasconsidered a marriage proposal, right?"

"Yeah," I say with a small smile on my face.

Before she says another word, I get down on one knee and pull out the ring Athena gave me.

"The first time I saw you was after I first came to camp, I was half unconscious and all I could see was the gold of your hair. I thought that you were an angel. After I woke up, I was terrified of you, but I stillthought you were beautiful. Then

/we went on our first quest together and I gained even more respect and awe of you that I had when I first met you. I first started to realize how much I likedyou when we were in the infirmary after Luke's betrayal and I saw how devastated you

were and my first thought, was to try and help you, to make you feel better.

Then, I had to go back to school, and the only thing that got me through each day was the thought of coming back to camp and seeing you again. Then,near the end of the year, I was attacked by monsters, and yet again, you saved my life. Ilearned

/more about you and your loyalty to your friends that summerwhen we had to save the camp, and Thalia's tree.

That winter was one of the worst of my life. When you disappeared over that cliff, I had to be held back to keep from jumping over after you. Only the quest to save Lady Artemiskept me from going out of my mind. I couldn't bear not knowing if you

/were ok or not. I was terrified that we would be to late and that you would be dead. When we found you, still alive, I was overjoyed.

That summer, we entered the labyrinth. I spent the entire time scared out of my wits and you were able to keep me sane. That quest was the first time told me to be safe and we both knew of the words that went unsaid. That you

wanted me to come back to you. I swore that I would, and after a time, I was able to.

Then there was the Battle of Manhattan. Beforehand, when I had gone to the Styx, the only thing that kept me from losing myself in its waters, was memories of you. When wewent into the battle,we had already lost some of our best people, our

best friends. I swore to myself that I wouldn't lose you.

When you jumped in frontof that sword from me on the bridge, I knew that you would do anything for me, just like I would for you. After the battle, when they offered me immortality, I knew that I couldn't do it. I couldn't live without you and I

/knew it. I would just become angry and bitter and vengeful. So I turned down an eternity alone for a few years with you.

We had some of the best months together and then we were ripped apart again. After I had lost my memory, the only thing that I remembered, the thing that kept me going while I tried to get to Camp Jupiter and while I was on my quest, was you. Your  
/face.

Your princess hair. Your storm gray eyes. Your laugh. That's what made me determined to live through anything that the gods threw at us.

Almost as soon as we were reunited in New Rome, we had to leave. To go on the run. Then I had to let you go on your quest. I never wanted to leave you again. But I had to. The next time we saw each other, we were falling in to Tartarus. I still have  
/nightmares

about our time there, the only way that I can get a good nights sleep is if you are in the same room. I wish you hadn't had to experience that ordeal, but at the sametime, I know that I wouldn't have lasted 10 minutes without you. When we got

out, all I could think of was getting you somewhere safe.

Those last battles were horrible but I knew that Icould survive anything, as long as I had my Wise Girl.".

I take a deep breath.

"So, Wise Girl, all these years later you are still my angel and I still feel the same jolt when we kissthat I felt thatfirst time under Mt. St. Helens. Youhave saved my life more times thanI can imagine. Can you save it one more

time and let me be your Seaweed Brain for the rest of our time together on this Earth?"

She looks at me, her goldenhair blowing in the morning wind.

Then she says, "My worst nightmare is losing you and I can't imagine even one day without , of course I will marry you Seaweed Brain!"

I jump up and kiss her, spinning her around in the air. Islipthe ring onto her finger and she kisses me again.

Then we here a voice behind us.

"Looks like these lovebirds need to cool off!," Clarisse says, smiling as she repeats the words said all those years ago.

"The canoe lake!" Conner shouts, smiling as well.

All our friends laugh and pick us up, carrying us to the lake, our hands intertwined.

We hold hands, even as they grow us into the water.

Just like last time, I create a bubble of air and while our friends were waiting for us to come up we did just like we did last time.

We had the best underwater kiss of all time.

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 **And cut! I hope that you all liked it. I am not sure it the whole apple thing was really a Greek custom, but there are a lot of Headcanons about it and I just really love the idea. So, please review. I will try and write other Percabeth fics, but for now this is it. Thanks for reading!**


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